GeometryDifficulty 5.7AIME, harderProve itUnited States
Problem:
Convex quadrilateral BCDE lies in the plane. Lines EB and DC intersect at A, with AB=2, AC=5, AD=200, AE=500, and cos∠BAC=97. What is the largest number of nonoverlapping circles that can lie in quadrilateral BCDE such that all of them are tangent to both lines BE and CD?
Solution
Solution:
Let θ=∠BAC, and cosθ=97 implies cos2θ=21+97=322; sin2θ=31; BC=4+25−2(2)(5)97=311.
Let O1 be the excircle of △ABC tangent to lines AB and AC, and let r1 be its radius; let O1 be tangent to line AB at point P1. Then AP1=2AB+BC+CA and AP1r1=tan2θ=221⟹r1=3⋅2216.
Let On be a circle tangent to On−1 and the lines AB and AC, and let rn be its radius; let On be tangent to line AB at point Pn. Then AOnOnPn=sin2θ=31; since △APnOn∼△APn−1On−1 and OnOn−1=rn+rn−1, we have
We want the highest n such that On is contained inside △ADE. Let the incircle of △ADE be tangent to AD at X; then the inradius of △ADE is tan2θAX=222500+200−21100=3⋅22500.
We want the highest n such that rn≤3⋅22500; thus 2n−1⋅16≤500⟹n=5.
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Source: MathNet,
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